MY TWENTY-FORST BIRTHDAY!

THERE'S a time in life when sadness,
Like a shadow disappears,
And our hearts rebound with gladness,
As we welcome coming years;
And the years that's gone before us,
Like a fleeting, happy dream,
Bring back sweet recollections
Of a life that's pass'd serene.
And on each successive birthday,
How we gladly gather round,
And give welcome to that circle
Where true friendship we have found;
And we bless each trusted comrade
With an honest open heart,
The days so bright we prophesied,
Re-echo'd in each heart.

In the earliest prime of manhood,
There's a dear delightful page
In life's history,-one-and-twenty
Is the flower of an age,
And an age when manly feelings
At the festive board abounds,
And the cheering, treasured faces
Of the friends we love, surround
The glad scenes on such occasions;
And on this occasion, I
Give the hand of "auld acquaintance,"
And in this, my best reply,
To the wishes kindly given,
And the health you drink to me,
May you know life's great enjoyment,
And each day as happy be,
As your best of friends could wish you;
And when many years are gone,
May we find that charm in birthdays,
As we do,-when twenty-one!


-Source: Joe Wilson,(author) Songs and Drolleries, 1890